The Biden administration wants to encourage Pakistan’s religious leaders to preach about climate change, a call for federal grants shows.
In exchange for the grant, State Department officials “identified 50 religious leaders” in Pakistan and sought organizations that “educate about climate change and raise awareness about its impacts,” according to federal grant documents. It is said that there is The ministry is targeting religious leaders: “Religious leaders should be asked to consider the environmental impact of their activities and how to reduce their carbon footprint and address the growing effects of climate change. “We have the moral authority to call on people and businesses to find out.”
The grant application says the program should recruit members of multiple religions, but more than 96% of Pakistanis are Muslim and “religious leaders have little influence in approving government initiatives.” “It plays a certain role,” he said. Islam is state religion The grant document specifies that the project is aimed at Muslim religious leaders. (Related: Hip-hop diplomacy: State Department uses urban music to promote racial justice and environmental protection abroad)
State Department officials expect the program to begin in October 2024 and last 12 to 18 months. Between $70,000 and $100,000 of taxpayer funds will be used to harness Pakistan’s religious leaders to fight climate change.
The State Department’s goal is to have clergy “communicate” knowledge about climate change during religious services. To prepare Pakistan’s religious leaders to serve on climate change issues, the State Department has outlined a five-step program it is asking nongovernmental organizations to implement.
First, the organization, which will ultimately receive support from the State Department, will identify 50 religious leaders from northern Pakistan’s Peshawar, Malakand and Hazara regions.
After identifying religious leaders, the organization will conduct a survey to assess their basic knowledge on climate change and environmental topics. Based on its research, the organization will develop a curriculum to educate clergy on climate issues, possibly in collaboration with the Pakistani government.
The organization will then use the curriculum to train religious leaders and conduct post-project surveys to measure how much participants learned over the course of the project.
Climate change is the biggest threat facing the world today. The United States has committed to reducing domestic emissions by 50 to 52 percent over the next 10 years and announced bold policies to deliver on that promise. But we can’t do this alone. We must act now. pic.twitter.com/kGmDlDGXGU
— Department of State (@StateDept) September 23, 2021
The Biden administration has launched several programs aimed at combating climate change in South Asia.
The State Department has allocated $50,000 for a “climate action podcast” in India aimed at inspiring India’s “changemakers” to “use innovation and technology to solve the climate crisis,” Washington said. -Reported by Free Beacon. report. The Ministry is also looking for NGOs that can: train Indian journalists are reporting better on climate change and boost According to the call for grants, the capacity of domestic green activist groups.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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